I don’t know what I can do for this bird. He (I think it is a he) can fly, but his ground hopping is definitely impaired. Balance, agility….if he couldn’t fly, I would be able to get this trash off his legs. As it is, there doesn’t seem to be anything I can do, other than remind people that when we don’t take care of the environment, we’re killing animals.
The people at Busch are supposed to know more than I do . . .
But alas, they said to use a lightweight towel or a pair of garden gloves (like if you could get close enough you wouldn’t have him by now). I’ve seen a wildlife rehabber use one of those big fishing (I guess) nets, but the guy said you can easily injure the bird by sort of clobbering him with the metal part.
A towel it is then. Though I might try a pillowcase since I don’t have any towels that seem very lightweight. And not that I’ve seen him for sure since last night. I have been watching the way birds move on the ground, though, and with his hobbled legs I think he’s almost as crippled as if he couldn’t fly. The difference is that if he couldn’t fly I could actually have gotten ahold of him last night.
It is so much easier to prevent than to fix. The stuff around his legs looks like some sort of outdoor fencing/netting. It probably came from someone’s garden.
Thanks for contacting Busch’s! Even if all they did was confirm what you’d already told me!
That is bird netting around his legs. Is he still around? If you are able to catch him (the hard part) I would think you could gently clip the netting off. Another person around would be a real asset.
Good luck!
Rahma
thanks rahmama. I haven’t seen him around. I’ve been keeping a pillow case handy, and I’ll make sure i have scissors handy as well in case I do see him…and can catch him.
Bird netting. Figures!
[...] Deb at Invinsible Voices also had a couple of related posts including one on transitioning to a bicycle and another visual post this month showing the connections between animal rights and the environment. [...]